Chapter 73: The Broken Heavenly Dao
(This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation)
Under a sky as crimson as blood, violet thunderclouds suddenly gathered, violently unleashing their wrath with a roar that shook the heavens.
Beneath the restless thunderclouds, an elder with only his upper body remained. He dragged behind him a grotesque blood tail formed of chaotic flesh, ascending along the Path of Immortality. When he saw countless bolts of lightning hovering like suspended swords, his expression twisted into one of disbelief. From his sunken eye sockets, blood-red light spilled forth.
[The Heavenly Dao was supposed to be on the brink of death, clinging desperately to its final breaths. Why does it still have the strength to retaliate?]
At that moment, the lightning bolts, sharp as swords, fell, cleaving the elder apart. Blood sprayed as terror filled his eyes.
“Why must one be acknowledged by the Seven Great Daoist Sects to ascend to immortality?”
“Because you’re nearing your end. You have no control over Azure Clouds Dominion, and you merely use this rule to prolong your own life!”
“I was a prodigy that amazed an entire era. Yet, because I lack the bloodline of the Seven Great Immortal Sects, I have been reduced to consuming my lifespan. Is this your version of the Dao?”
“The sages you selected, were they truly wise? Are their descendants also wise?”
“This world is fragmented, and so are you, a broken Heavenly Dao!”
“I used a realm without heavens as my furnace, ignited karmic flames, and with the spiritual essence of countless cultivators, I refined the Primordial Remnant Race’s Immortal Path. I have already surpassed your grasp. You cannot stop me!”
As his rant echoed through the skies, another enormous thundercloud began to condense.
The elder froze, suffocating. “I was just venting my frustrations. If you truly possess the Dao, then do not obstruct me!”
In response, endless bolts of divine lightning struck relentlessly, each one tearing through his writhing flesh. Blood and gore splattered in every direction.
Though the elder was suppressed by the lightning, he soon emerged again, snarling grotesquely. His enormous blood tail was now decayed, revealing sickly pink flesh that oozed a nauseating, grease-like substance. Yet, he continued to ascend against the current.
[The Heavenly Dao is merely posturing. It’s a paper tiger! It gathered such an overwhelming tribulation at the start because it can’t muster a second round.]
[As long as I use this wretched body to break through the gates of immortality, shedding this mortal form, the future will bring boundless longevity and true freedom.]
But to his dismay, when the first barrage of lightning had been spent, the skies began to gather an even darker violet thundercloud, its power even greater than before.
The elder was once again suffocated. He roared, insisting he had only spoken in anger. His blood-red eyes were wild and furious, his enormous blood tail writhing uncontrollably, greedily absorbing the remaining spiritual essence around him.
Deep within the ruins, amidst the so-called Central Celestial Mountain, countless cultivators remained trapped in the “Immortal Dream.” Though their bodies had yet to be consumed by karmic flames, unbearable pain wracked them. Spiritual essence exploded from within, shattering their bodies. In that moment, there was no so-called ultimate freedom or profound mystery.
As fountains of blood erupted, the entire mountainside was dyed crimson.
The Headmaster of the Heavenly Script Academy stood high above the nine heavens. His aura surged wildly in the gale, his white beard fluttering in the wind. In his hands, he held a golden Heavenly Tome, trembling violently.
Even so, the Headmaster stood motionless, watching it all unfold. He refrained from intervening.
He could not enter the ruins, and neither could the Heavenly Tome, for they would be tainted.
At this moment, the newly condensed divine lightning struck the ferocious elder once more. A trace of annihilation spread in all directions.
The elder froze, though his writhing blood tail continued to struggle violently, letting out a sharp, piercing screech as if attempting to sever itself.
That shrill sound carried an unnerving aura that made countless mortals below tremble uncontrollably. They did not understand what was happening; they only saw flashes of lightning alternating with red light in the distant sky. Overwhelmed with fear, they kowtowed lower and lower.
Even the cultivators within the city struggled to make sense of it.
That region of heaven and earth had already been torn asunder, the Heavenly Dao thrown into chaos and disarray.
“Something monumental must be happening in the heavens…”
“Perhaps spiritual senses could offer a glimpse?”
Ji You stood in the Tea Pavilion, one hand gripping a column, his left foot perched on an outward-jutting eave. His upper body leaned out of the pavilion, his eyes faintly glowing gold.
Before his spiritual senses could ascend, he heard a sharp “thud.”
Across the street, atop the tiled roof of a commoner’s home, another elder, similarly drawn by curiosity, suddenly spat blood and toppled onto the street below.
[Do not use spiritual senses,] the elder muttered weakly before losing consciousness.
“Forget it, I won’t look.”
“Not because I’m afraid of death, but because I’m not interested in senseless drama.”
Ji You retracted his body, calmly picked up his teacup, and accidentally spilled tea all over the table as his hands trembled.
At that moment, a thunderclap even more magnificent than before descended from the heavens, splitting the sky and briefly illuminating the world in piercing clarity. However, the light was fleeting, and the oppressive darkness swiftly reclaimed its dominion.
In that instant of clarity, Ji You’s sharp eyes caught sight of something sinister—a viscous blackness slowly spreading across the heavens, its ominous tendrils reaching outward. The night was so dark that the blackness seemed to blend seamlessly into it, making it difficult to discern, yet Ji You was certain it continued to spread.
To reach the Boundless Martial Stage, a cultivator must fully master the art of merging into the void. As Ji You had not yet achieved this, he could not confirm whether the heavens had a boundary. Still, this sight unsettled him deeply.
[I suppose the most powerful cultivator I’ve ever met is still the one with a penchant for kicking people—Fairy Zheng Xin,] he thought.
Suddenly, a mass of scorched flesh, still glistening with faintly pink patches and dripping with unctuous fat, fell from the sky. It trembled unnervingly as it plummeted. Not far away, an elder with blood-red eyes now clouded with despair began to shudder violently. His decrepit body crumbled further with each tremor.
Though forced to act before his life force was utterly spent, the elder had prepared extensively for this moment. Yet even with all his effort, he had not managed to glimpse the legendary Immortal Gate. This path was sealed to him. It was no longer his concern, however, for he was about to die.
As the thought of death crossed his mind, the elder’s fragmented flesh seemed to surge with a final burst of vitality. His scattered remains reassembled into a grotesque semblance of form. Drawing upon the last vestiges of his strength, he opened his mouth wide, and a blood-red pillar of light shot forth. It pierced the void for thousands of miles, tearing through the night and vanishing into the distant horizon.
With this final strike, the light in the elder’s eyes faded completely, and his crumbling body plummeted into the mountains below. He landed on a peak already stained crimson with blood, disappearing from view.
Only then did the Headmaster of the Heavenly Script Academy respond. With the Heavenly Tome in hand, he ascended into the sky. Ji You had not been mistaken; beneath the boundless night, the sticky blackness truly spread insidiously, accelerating its advance. Yet, as the Heavenly Tome emitted a radiant celestial light, the darkness retreated as though scorched by flame. The blackness—akin to an endless swarm of ants—recoiled, scattering in search of alternative paths.
Undeterred, the Headmaster pursued, his Heavenly Tome radiating resplendent golden light. As the light flared, it burned through the blackness completely, leaving a trail of clarity in its wake. The world seemed to breathe again as the oppressive darkness dissipated.
Outside Ningcheng County, the pervasive malice abruptly retreated with a wailing howl, surging back into the mountains. The sinister beings that had overrun the area suddenly collapsed lifelessly to the ground, as if drained of all vitality.
A single beam of sunlight broke through the skies, scattering golden rays across the land. Initially blinding, it caused the gathered crowd to shield their eyes. After a long while, they adjusted to the radiance, only to realize that it was not nighttime but high noon.
Most of the onlookers had no idea what had transpired in the mountains. They saw only countless flying swords darting toward the ruins in a frenzy, their wielders’ faces fraught with newfound urgency.
Ji You, recovering from his stupor, descended from the tea pavilion and stepped into the sunlight. He gazed at the clear sky, and in that moment, he felt the majestic Heavenly Dao return. A wave of powerful Qi erupted from his body, intertwining with surging celestial light.
Nearby cultivators turned to look at him, their faces filled with shock at his youthful countenance.
[He’s about to achieve Mystic Enlightenment,] they thought in unison.
Indeed, Ji You had already crossed the threshold while within the ruins. However, the absence of the Heavenly Dao in that accursed place had suppressed his cultivation, preventing his breakthrough. Now, standing beneath the restored heavens, his suppressed power threatened to burst free.
But Ji You furrowed his brow and forcefully restrained his spiritual consciousness, severing any response to the Heavenly Dao. The celestial light surrounding him receded instantly, dissipating back into the void.
[Not yet,] he resolved silently. [The old physician was right. If I break through now, without the proper backing, I’ll only be a target.]
After all, Ji You had left the Immortal Sect. Without its protection, his prospects would be bleak.
[Here in Qiling, so many cultivators have already perished. One more ‘Ji’ among the dead would hardly matter,] he mused.
He clenched his fists. [No. I’ll return to the Heavenly Script Academy. I’ll make my breakthrough in full view of everyone, bask in their praise, and watch their admiration spread far and wide. Only then will I be safe.]
Such was the life of a wandering rogue cultivator. He could not afford recklessness.
Suppressing his cultivation, Ji You yawned and turned his attention to the long street ahead.
[Where is that errand boy? Surely he hasn’t run off with the money?]
Just as the thought crossed his mind, a silver ingot was suddenly tossed out from the alley across the way, rolling to a stop not far from him.
“?” Ji You’s brow furrowed.
[Wild silver?]